What Province am I Resident Of?

Student loan applications depend upon the province of residency.

General Requirements

To be eligible for student loan funding one must:

a) Be a Canadian citizen, landed immigrant or convention refugee.

Landed immigrants do not qualify for provincial funding unless they have lived in a single province for at least 12 months consecutively without being a full-time post-secondary student. After the 12 months he/she qualifies for both provincial and federal loan funding.

Convention refugees qualify for both provincial and federal loan funding upon proving their status with a copy of their SIN in the 900 series and a Protected Persons Status Document (PPSD). The PPSD must be valid for the entire period of study.

b) Prove financial need.

c) Be a full-time student (at least 60% of a normal full course load, 40% if a student with a permanent disability).

d) Maintain passing grades in at least 60% of a full course load.

e) Have not defaulted or have bad standing on previous student loans.

f) Have not reached the student loan debt limit for the student's level of education, type of degree or program.

Dependent vs. Independent Student

Residency depends on students' status as either a dependent or independent student.

A dependent student:

• has been out of high school for less than four years.

An independent student:

• has been out of high school for more than four complete years
• has been available to the work force without being a student for 2 periods of 12 consecutive months
• is married or orphaned
• is a full-custody parent

Residency for dependent students

• The student is considered a resident of the province where the parent, guardian or sponsor has lived for at least 12 consecutive months prior to starting school.
• If one parent works in another province, the student is a resident of the province where the family home is being kept.
• If the parents are separated or divorced, the province of residence is with the parent the student normally live with or from whom the main financial support is received.
• If parents move to another province but the student stays in Alberta, for example, to continue your post-secondary education then Alberta will continue to be the province of residence.
• If parents live out of the country, then the province of residence is the province in which they last resided or maintained a family home for at least 12 consecutive months before going abroad.
• If the student is a Canadian citizen but the parents have not lived in Canada, the student may not be eligible for provincial funding. The student will, however, be eligible for federal funding. Apply through the province of residence.

Residency for independent students

Single or single parent: a student establishes residence by living in a province for 12 months, not including time spent as a full-time student at a post secondary institution, prior to enrolling in the chosen program. If the student hasn't spent 12 consecutive months in a province, he/she should apply in the province where residency was established while a dependent student.

Married or common law: a student is considered a resident of the province where a working spouse has been employed for 12 months before the start of the academic year. If the student and his/her spouse are both enrolled and applying for assistance, it's desirable that one province support both individuals, usually the province where both are enrolled, provided it is one of the provinces where one of the couple lives.

Residency for landed immigrants

A student is considered a resident of the province where he/she landed or the province in which the most time has been spent. If, however, the student has not been available to the labour market in that province for 12 months consecutively he/she may only be eligible for federal funding.

Province Specific situations

In Saskatchewan, a student who has been going to school for four consecutive years will become a resident of Saskatchewan in his/her fifth consecutive year of post-secondary study.

In Ontario, residency can be based on a common-law same-sex relationship. It may also be based on the amount of time the partner has lived in Ontario. However, the partner must have lived in Ontario for at least 12 consecutive months up to the start of the current study period, during which time he/she must not have been enrolled in full-time post-secondary studies.

In Ontario, a student must be out of high school for 5 years to be considered independent.

In Alberta, a student from another province who completes an undergraduate degree here and stays in Alberta for graduate studies will be considered an Alberta resident.

Also, Alberta students who are deemed to be "dependent" may apply for Special Independent Status if the family's home places them at risk physically, sexually, emotionally or mentally. Special Independent Status grants these students an "away from home" budget of $941 and exempts these students from submitting a Parental Information Form (Schedule 1). Please visit our office and speak with a Financial Aid Advisor to determine eligibility for Special Independent Status.

If students do not meet residency requirements

Students must provide a detailed explanation of residency history and any relevant supporting documentation. In addition, if students have lived in another province, they must contact that province's student assistance program to determine eligibility for applying, and they must provide a written statement from that province with respect to eligibility for its student assistance program. Forward the documentation to the appropriate provincial Students' Finance office.

Once students know which province to apply through, they should click on that province in the menu on the left hand side for information on how to apply through that province.